Shoe last



Aug. 16, 1938. H, BARGE 2,126,941

SHOE LAST Fil ed Aug. 10, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VE/VTOR G. H. BARGEAug. 16, 1938.

SHOE LAST Filed Aug. 10, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR BY I A 7701?EYJ.

Patented Aug. 16, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SHOE LAST GeorgeHeinerich Barge, Jamaica, N. Y., assignor,

by mesne assignments, to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Paterson, N.J., a. corporation of New Jersey Application August 10, 1936, Serial No.95,219 6 Claims. (Cl. 12128) This invention relates to shoe lasts andparticu- Fig. 1 is a side elevation, partly broken away, of larly toshoe lasts employed in the repair of a shoe supported in a shoe press;womens shoes, wherein a new sole is attached to Fig. 2 is aperspective'view of a last equipped the upper part of the shoe by beingcemented with one of the arch supporting inserts; s thereto. Figs. 3 and4 are top plan views of a pair of lasts 5 The shoe sole attachingoperation is usually carequipped each with an arch supporting insert;ried out by means of a small hand-operated press Fig. 5 is a sideelevation of a shoe last fitted in in which the shoe is supported underpressure a shoe (shown in phantom) for which it is paruntil the cementis thoroughly dry and the sole ticularly shaped; I

i thereby securely fixed to the shoe upper. In Fig. 6 is a view similarto Fig. 5, showing the order to bring all portions of the sole intoconlast and an arch supporting insert adapting it to a tact with theshoe upper and to obtain a unistyle of shoe different from that forwhich it is form distribution of pressure over the entire areaparticularly shaped; of the sole while the cement is drying and therebyFig. 7 is a view similar to Figs. 5 and 6, but

effect a good attachment of the sole to the upper, showing the last witha different arch supporting 15 the shoe must be supported by a lastconforminsert to adapt it to still another style of shoe; ing accuratelyto the shape of the shoe and par- Fig. 8 is a perspective view of one ofthe arch ticularly to the shape of the arch or shank por- S pp rt ginserts; tion, which varies according to the style of the 9 is a Sec o Vew ake On t e l e 9- shoe as determined by the height of the heel, ofFig. 6; Obviously, the shoe last equipment required for Fig. 10 is aside elevation of a different form of the repair of shoes is extensive,for it must be s Sho g O Of h arch Supporting inserts sufficient for theresoling of all sizes of shoes of associated therewith; and each style,or, in other words, it must comprise a Fig. 11 s a Sectional e taken 0the ne 35 pair of lasts for each size of each style of shoes. of Womensshoes generally range from size 3 to In the a p y draWingS, a dreferring size 8, there being several widths of each size, pa t u a lyt0 g. the shoe p e S OW S Suband there are at least four differentstyles or heel stantially like that disclosed in U. S. Patent No.heights, each with a different arch contour, so Comprising a base I,Which is hOllOW that disregarding width variations for each size of hh pd to serve s a r s rv r r W r, 30

shoe a minimum of six pairs of lasts for each style covered with aflexible shoe suppor D 2 of shoe is required. formed by a rubberdiaphragm 3 and an overlying In its broader aspects, the presentinvention leather Covering the letter protecting the contemplates a lastof given size and shape and D from Wear p ss l uptur h t einterchangeable means selectively cooperable S e 5 thereOn is placedunder Pressure- In the therewith to provide a last entirely of difierentp t t ee ted 0n he unde side Of the size and shape. More specifically,the invention s there is a d a electrical e t eprovides for thecombination with a, shoe last havment thermostatically controlled tomaintain the ing an arch or shank portion shaped to fit. the Waterwithin the hollow base at the desired temarch of one style of shoe, of aplurality of quick p a u e a all t e When the p ss s n use. 40detachable shaped inserts or arch supports selecthe Water in the basebeing d sp aeeable a o s tively attachable thereto to adapt the last tofit the pad to conform to the Shape of t shoe any one of several stylesof Shoes each having and the water forms asubstantially rigid mediurndifierently shaped arches when under pressure, which, due to itshydrostatic In the accompanying drawings, the invention and heatConducting propertles dlstnptltes presby of if in prefenjed fqrm andObviously manyyarifations ed for attaching half-soles to ghoes and the rar and modifications may be made therein wlthout edge 1 of the pad 2stretches over the base I of the departmgi from the spmt and scope ofthe mven press and turns downwardly so that the heel of the tion. It 15to be understood, therefore, that the shoe is unsupported and the archrests directly invention is not limited to any specific form or on theembodiment except insofar as such limitations are Th means for pressingthe shoe 5 firmly down specified in the appended claims. on the pad 2comprises the pressure distributing Referring to the drawings: arm orlever 8 pivotally mounted on the base I, 55

as at 9, at the forward end of the press and when in operative positionextending fore-and-aft over the pad 2, as shown. Near its lower edge,the arm 8 is formed with a plurality of apertures [9 adapted toaccommodate a pin H by which a post [2 is suspended for engagement withthe gooseneck pressure column l3 of the metal last l4, so formed totransmit pressure uniformly throughout the last, the pin l i beingpositionable in different apertures it to locate the post l2 properly tocooperate with lasts for shoes of different size. The bell-crank leveri5 is pivotally mounted on the upper edge of the arm 8 to rock about thepin l6 and its short arm H is formed with a series of notches IE toreceive the bail or link l9 connecting the ends of a pair of springs 20,the opposite ends of which are anchored by brackets 2i secured to thebase i and which springs, when placed under tension by rocking thebell-crank lever l5, exert pressure which is distributed over the lengthof the shoe 5 by the arm 8 and through the medium of the water in thebase over the entire area of the shoe sole. In order to maintain thebell-crank lever 15 in any position to which it is rocked, the latch 22,pivoted at the free end of the short arm ll of the lever, as at 23, isprovided to engage in one of the series of notches 24 formed on theupper edge of the arm 8, the latch riding freely from one notch toanother when the bell-crank lever is rocked counter-clockwise, butengaging in one of the notches to resist the pull of the tensionedsprings 20 tending to rock the lever in the opposite direction.

The shoe last l4, shown in Figs. 1 to 7, is a well known type of metallast designed to support the toe and arch or shank portions of the shoe.The last M is shaped particularly to fit a high or spike heeled shoe asshown in Fig. 5, having a toe portion 25 and an extended shank portion28 whose under surfaces conform accurately to the shape of the toe andarch portions of the shoe. However, if used with a lower heel, say aBaby French heel, Fig. 6, or a Cuban heel, Fig. '7, the entire arch ofthe shoe will be unsupported by the last and in the sole attachingoperation the arch of the shoe will yield under pressure and a poor, ifnot entirely unsuccessful, attachment of the shank portion of the solewith the arch of the shoe will result.

According to the present invention, paired arch supporting inserts 21are provided, each equipped with a spring steel clip 28 having a turnedup end 29 and a horizontal portion 36 embedded therein, as best shown inFigs. 9 and 11. The portion 3!! of the clip 23 emerges preferably fromthe outer side of the insert 21 and is bent upwardly with a verticalportion 3i thereof in engagement with a lateral spacing projection 32formed on the side of the insert and which provides lateral freedom ofmovement for the proper fitting of the insert to the last shanks 25,which vary slightly in width in different sized lasts. Above the uppersurface 33 of the insert 2?, the clip is bent at substantially rightangles so that a horizontal arm or portion 34 thereof extends entirelyacross the top of the insert in spaced relation thereto, and its freeend 35 is slightly upturned to facilitate its attachment to the shankextension 26 of the last It, the upper surface of which is formed with atransverse groove 36 to receive the portion 34 of the clip. The uppersurface 33 of each of the inserts 21 is formed so as to correspond tothe contour of the under surface of the shank portion 26 of the last towhich it is to be attached; while the shape of the lower surface 31 ofeach insert is determined by the contour of the arch of the style ofshoe for which it is adapted, as clearly shown by a comparison of theinserts shown in Figs. 6 and 7.

A modification of the invention showing its application to a wooden lastis shown in Figs. and 11. According to this embodiment of the invention,a wooden last 38 may be formed with a transverse opening 39 whereinthere is fitted a metal sleeve ill adapted to receive the overlyingattaching arm 34 of the spring clip 28. With this very simplemodification, wooden lasts constituting a part of existing repairequipment may be converted for use with the same inserts 21 that areprovided for use with the metal lasts M.

It is pointed out that the inserts 27 may be formed of any materialsuitably rigid to give adequate support to the arch during the soleattaching operation. Hard rubber inserts are preferable, however, forthe reason that their slight compressability adapts a single pair ofinserts for use with all six different sizes of shoes of a given style.they are slightly wider than the arch of the smallest (size 3) shoe, butnot so large that they may not be readily inserted into the shoe. On theother hand, the width of the insert is slightly less than the width ofthe arch of the largest (size 8) shoe, but when under pressure duringthe sole cementing operation the insert is compressed and the rubberdisplaced laterally so that its width is substantially equal to thewidth of the arch of the shoe. Hence, by the present invention therequired shoe last equipment for repairing shoes is reduced to a singleset of six pairs of lasts id for high heeled shoes and three pairs ofarch supporting inserts 2'? to adapt the lasts to shoes having lowerheels.

As already stated, a preferred embodiment of the invention has beenshown and described by way of example, but the invention is not limitedto such embodiment alone. For example, it is within the scope of theinvention to employ interchangeable shaped inserts or attachments toalter the size or shape, or both, of a basic shoe supporting form in anylocalized area thereof or in its entirety. Hence, the invention is notlimited to any specific form'or embodiment except insofar as suchlimitations appear in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim is:

1. The combination with a shoe last comprising an integral structureformed with toe and shank portions shaped to conform to the forepart andshank of a shoe having a heel of maximum height to support said portionsof the shoe under pressure for the attachment of a sole to the shoeupper by cement, of a member shaped to conform to the shank portion of ashoe of lesser heel height and of different contour than the shankportion of the last and being constructed and arranged to be attached tothe last to underlie the shank portion thereof to support the shank ofthe shoe when pressure is exerted thereon.

2. The combination with a shoe last comprising an integral structureformed with toe and shank portions shaped to conform to the forepart andshank of a shoe having a heel of maximum height to support said portionsof the shoe under pressure for the attachment of a sole to the shoeupper by cement, of a quick-detachable member shaped to conform to theshank portion of a shoe of lesser heel height and of different Theinserts are formed so that contour than the shank portion of the lastand being constructed and arranged to be attached to the last tounderlie the shank portion thereof to support the shank of the shoe whenpressure is exerted thereon.

3. The combination with a shoe last comprising an integral structureformed with toe and shank portions shaped to conform to the forepart andshank of a shoe having a heel of maximum height to support said portionsof the shoe under pressure for the attachment of a sole to the shoeupper by cement, of a member shaped to conform to the shank portion of ashoe of lesser heel height and of difierent contour than the shankportion of the last and being formed with a spring clip adapted toengage in a recess formed in the shank portion of the last to attach themember thereto and locate it in proper position underlying the shankportion of the last to support the shank of the shoe when pressure isexerted thereon.

4. A shoe shank supporting insert for use with a shoe sole supportinglast having a shank portion shaped to conform to the shank portion of ashoe of maximum heel height to adapt the last for use with a shoe havinga lesser heel height and a shank of difierent contour than the shankportion of the last, comprising a member formed with one surface shapedto correspond to the shape of the shank supporting surface of the lastand another surface corresponding to the shape of the shank of the shoeof lesser heel height and different shank contour which it is adapted tofit, and means for attaching said member to the last.

5. A shoe shank supporting insert according to claim 4, characterized bythe fact that the insert is adapted for use with a plurality of lastsadapted to fit different sizes of shoes of the same heel height, theshanks of which vary in width according to the size of the shoe, andfurther characterized by the fact that said attaching means is formedfor the attachment of said member to any one of said lasts in properposition relative thereto. I

6. A shoe shank insert according to claim 4, characterized by the factthat the insert is formed of rubber and adapted for use with a pluralityof lasts adapted to fit different sizes of shoes of the same heelheight, the shanks of which vary in width according to the size of theshoe and the rubber insert being compressible and displaceable toaccommodate itself to the width of the shank, and further characterizedby the fact that the attaching means is in the form of a spring clipanchored to the insert and engageable in a recess formed in the last.

GEORGE HEINERICH BARGE.

